The overall goal of the Community Core is to foster bi-directional interaction between Center projects and the Jackson and Detroit communities in order to disseminate and translate knowledge gained from the Centers' studies, enhance understanding of the multilevel determinants of cardiovascular risk, and strengthen the capacity of community, academic and health service providers to collaborate effectively to promote cardiovascular health equity. Toward this end, the Community Core will disseminate knowledge on the multilevel determinants of health to community members, local health professionals and policy makers, build collaborative relationships among community, academic and health service providers in Jackson and in Detroit, and enhance partners' ability to work effectively together to translate science into programs and policies to promote cardiovascular health. The aims will be accomplished through collaboration between researchers and community partners in Jackson and in Detroit, and will build on the well -established and internationally recognized community-based participatory methods implemented in Detroit by the Urban Research Center (URC) and the foundation that has been built in Jackson through the community outreach activities of the JHS.